Ala. Schools Asked to Ban 'Facing the Giants'
The Americans United for Separation of Church and State sent a letter Tuesday asking the Tuscaloosa City Schools board to bar teachers at Paul W. Bryant High School from showing the movie "Facing the Giants."
The group said that it had received several complaints last fall about students being shown the movie in class.
According to Tuscaloosa City Schools, the film was shown to two classes at the school prior to the semester break.
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Tuscaloosa City Schools said Tuesday that the school's principal has "suspended any further showings until the merits of the complaint can be addressed," according to a statement.
In the letter sent to Tuscaloosa City Schools Superintendent Joyce Levey and Bryant High Principal Amanda Cassity, Americans United alleges that "Facing the Giants" is aimed at evangelism and that showing the film in class violates the Establishment Clause.
"This movie is not educational; it's evangelistic," said the Rev. Barry W. Lynn, executive director of Americans United, in a statement. "Parents and taxpayers expect our public schools to teach, not preach."
The D.C.-based organization has asked for a response by Feb. 15.
"Facing the Giants" was made by Sherwood Baptist Church in Albany, Ga. The film, made with a volunteer cast of the church's members, tells the story of a losing football coach at a Christian high school who leads the underdog team to victory as he encourages players to "give your best to God." The movie's tagline is "With God, all things are possible."
Produced with about $100,000, the film has grossed more than $10 million since its release in September 2006. Christians hailed the success of the film as a growing demand for clean, family-friendly alternatives to Hollywood productions.
Moreover, the Rev. Michael Catt, senior pastor of the church, has credited the movie for leading 3,000 people to convert to Christianity, reported Americans United, citing comments he made during a pastors' breakfast at the 2007 Values Voter Summit in Washington, D.C.
Bryan K. Fair, a professor at the University of Alabama School of Law who specializes in the First Amendment, said determining the "context" and "purpose" of showing the movie would be the central question the court would ask if it were to take up a case involving religion in the public schools.
"I doubt very seriously that the majority of the current Supreme Court would say that the showing of this film is any sort of religious activity," Fair told Tuscaloosa News.
